Regional league team Offenbach celebrates
Bremen's triple Keke Topp makes a dream debut in the cup
Breathe a sigh of relief at Werder Bremen: The Bundesliga club is not extending its involuntary negative record in the DFB Cup. The match winner is newcomer Keke Topp. Koblenz makes Wolfsburg sweat and Offenbach creates a surprise.
TuS Koblenz – VfL Wolfsburg 0:1 (0:1)
Little shine, but also few problems: VfL Wolfsburg has once again overcome the first hurdle in the DFB Cup. Six days before the Bundesliga opener against record champions Bayern Munich, the Lower Saxony team beat upper division club TuS Koblenz 1-0 (1-0) and moved into the second round for the eleventh time in twelve years. The Wolves last failed in their first cup game in 2021 – 0-2 at the then regional league team Preußen Münster.
Patrick Wimmer gave the 2015 cup winners the lead with a header in front of 7,500 spectators (15th), which the Bundesliga club mainly managed from then on. In the final phase, the outsider played outnumbered Yasin Yaman (79th) after being red.
In the first competitive game of the season, coach Ralph Hasenhüttl only put one new signing in the starting line-up: goalkeeper Kamil Grabara, who came from FC Copenhagen for 13.5 million euros. The guests dominated the game from the start, had significantly more possession of the ball, but only a few clear chances to score. The 1-0 was somewhat surprising – after a corner from Jakub Kaminski, Wimmer headed straight in front of TuS keeper Michael Zadach.
Even after that, Wolfsburg had the game firmly under control, but the offensive remained harmless. Koblenz defended itself with all its possibilities, but did not pose a serious threat to the guests' goal for a long time. It was only when VfL were too careless that Marcel Wingender had the first good chance to score for TuS, the shot went just over the goal (71'). Seven minutes later, Yaman was shown a red card after a hard tackle against Wimmer.
Energie Cottbus – Werder Bremen 1:3 (0:2)
Thanks to a hat-trick from Keke Topp, Bundesliga club Werder Bremen mastered the first round with ease. Coach Ole Werner's team won 3-1 (2-0) against third division promoted Energie Cottbus and did not extend their unwanted record any further. No first division team failed more often in the first round than Werder (13 times), most recently last year against third division club Viktoria Köln.
The 20-year-old newcomer Topp (32nd/37th/55th) shone with three goals in his competitive debut. The offensive efforts of the weakened team of coach Claus-Dieter Wollitz, who will take over the position of sports director at Energie after the season, were too timid. With one exception: Henry Rorig scored the consolation goal with a remarkable free kick (70th). After a hard challenge against Werder goalkeeper Michael Zetterer, Romario Hajrulla also saw a red card (78th).
Curious: For Werner it was only his second victory in the DFB Cup as Bremen coach. The longest-serving Bundesliga coach achieved his first success in 2022 – also in Cottbus (2:1). In memory of long-time Werder manager Willi Lemke, who died a week ago, both teams wore mourning ribbons. Before kick-off, there was a minute's silence in front of 20,000 spectators in the Friendship Stadium – on the day that Lemke would have celebrated his 78th birthday. “It’s an additional motivation for us,” said Werner in advance.
And his team took the initiative straight away: Marvin Ducksch (16th) was denied by energy keeper Elias Bethke, Jens Stage missed the best chance from five meters (23rd) after a strong combination. Topp, who came from Schalke 04 in the summer, was free in front of Bethke twice – and rewarded the dominant Bremen team.
But the hosts gained new hope during the break, but former Bundesliga professional Tolcay Cigerci (47th) couldn't score with his shoulder. Topp then made the decision, was substituted after 60 minutes and is likely to play on Saturday (3.30 p.m./Sky and in the ntv.de live ticker) guaranteed a place in the starting eleven at FC Augsburg. Rorig's perfectly placed free kick from 23 meters didn't bother the six-time cup winners.
Kickers Offenbach – 1. FC Magdeburg 2:1 (1:0)
The Kickers Offenbach were the first amateur club to reach the second round. The regional soccer team surprisingly eliminated the second division team 1. FC Magdeburg 2-1 (1-0). This means that the former Bundesliga team and cup winners from 1970 are back in the second main round for the first time in ten years.
Alexander Sorge gave the hosts the lead with a header in front of 16,500 spectators at Bieberer Berg (31'), Martijn Kaars equalized for the second division team (54'). The decision was made by substitute Valdrin Mustafa (74th), who had already knocked Bayer Leverkusen and Werder Bremen out of the cup with SV Elversberg and Viktoria Köln.
Magdeburg started dominantly, but didn't pay attention to a set-piece situation: After a free kick from Marc Wachs, Sorge headed in from close range. Despite 70 percent possession of the ball, the guests hardly created any significant chances. After the break, Magdeburg increased the pace and played more purposefully. The deserved equalizer after a cross from Tatsuya Ito was the logical consequence. But the favorite was surprised again: Boubacar Barry broke through on the left side and Wachs used his cross to pass to Mustafa.
